Strangers In The Night
by Marzi
Summary: He put himself in the chair across from her as if he did it every night. The bar was hardly full, so Laura raised an eyebrow at his insistence to sit with her rather than find his own spot. When he smiled, it didn't quite reach his eyes. After the thrill of settling had faded, most people didn't smile quite right anymore.


AN/ I don't remember how long ago I wrote this, so I decided it was done and to post it.

* * *

 **Strangers In The Night**

He put himself in the chair across from her as if he did it every night. The bar was hardly full, so Laura raised an eyebrow at his insistence to sit with her rather than find his own spot. When he smiled, it didn't quite reach his eyes. After the thrill of settling had faded, most people didn't smile quite right anymore.

"Ms. Roslin."

The problem with being a school teacher was that she had been the president. Everyone knew her name and where to find her.

"Mmm?"

"Ca- Jack Harkness." He held his hand out for her to take.

Captain? Why wouldn't he want to introduce himself with his rank? He didn't look familiar, but she had never met all of _Galactica_ or _Pegasus's_ crew. Maybe he had just been granted leave. She didn't recognize the name from one of the civilian ships. When she shook his hand his skin was warm despite the chill of the bar and the wind from outside.

"Nice to meet you, Jack." She tried to smile in turn.

"The pleasure is all mine." His thumb brushed across her fingers before he let go.

The corner of her lip pulled up with real amusement, but she hid it by taking a drink. She didn't offer any other greetings, he had been the one to approach her, so he would be the one to start the conversation. If that was what he planned anyway, he seemed content to stare at her, so she did the same to him. With such a handsome face it was a little surprising she was unaware of who he was, even if it was just by reputation. Gossip had helped keep people alive in space, and stories of fresh blood aboard the _Pegasus_ would have made quick rounds once the ship joined the fleet. Perhaps he wasn't a captain though, and had simply refrained from saying his real name. Why bother to hide it though?

"Ms. Roslin-"

"Laura." She was sitting in a bar, and didn't want to be treated like a school teacher, or a former president.

"Laura." This smile made his eyes crinkles and dimples appear in his cheeks.

They definitely weren't going to spend the whole night just staring at each other.

* * *

His kisses started on her ankle, moving up her calf until he was nibbling at the tendons at the back of her knee. Her foot flexed at the sensation, but her toes quickly curled as his mouth moved across her inner thigh. He had put her leg over his shoulder, and her calf slid across his bare skin until her knee hooked onto him and his mouth was on her sex. Laura tangled her fingers into his hair with one hand, the other gripping the bicep of the arm that held her hip. The fingers on his free hand spread her and his tongue started to trace her folds.

Fuck. Jack Harkness was a slow building tease.

When she tugged at his hair he pressed his thumb against her clit. Jack moved his mouth to her thigh, biting gently as he began circling the bundle of nerves.

Her grip tightened on his arm and she arched her hips, bringing herself closer to his hand. He pulled away and she dropped back to the mattress.

Definitely a tease.

After running his tongue over the bite mark he had left, Jack finally lowered his head back down.

"Am I not supposed to move?"

"You're supposed to enjoy yourself."

The feel of his voice against her made her toes curl again. "I am."

If he replied it was lost when his tongue traveled across her folds.

* * *

She almost asked _what ship were you on_ , _who was your CO,_ but she bit her tongue. The altogether unexpected and pleasant evening he had given her was worth holding in her questions. Laura slid off the edge of her cot, warmth from her well exercised (and well massaged, gods that man had a pair of hands) muscles keeping her from seeking clothing. The bed creaked behind her and she looked over her shoulder to see Jack watching her. The sad smile from earlier was back on his face, and unease crawled across her skin for the first time that evening. She moved back to the task at hand, trying to shake the feeling.

Being looked at like that... it made her feel like a ghost.

Box in hand, she hurried back to the cot, residual warmth having faded. Jack pulled the blankets around her, though his hands didn't linger more than a moment. Had he spotted her sudden tension? She balanced the box on her leg, opening it slowly so that it didn't tip over. Picking up the contents if it spilled was always a pain in the ass.

When she had taken what she wanted and set the box aside, Jack started laughing.

"Well, there's something the history books don't tell you."

"What?"

"Nothing."

Laura kept her focus on the end of the joint as she lit it, trying to keep her confusion from being noticed. When she looked to her side, there was an uneasiness in him, and he was keeping his focus on the canvas walls. She didn't offer the joint to him and the lines in his shoulders relaxed.

She closed her eyes when she breathed in the smoke.

* * *

The coat he shrugged on was long, covering most of his body. She didn't remember seeing it at the bar. Had she been that distracted? Laura sat up on the cot and Jack turned towards her.

"Didn't mean to wake you."

"It's alright." She looked towards the entrance of her tent, where no light seeped through. If the sun was up it would have been gleaming through all the walls of the canvas, but early enough in the morning, light only made it through the seams. It was still late for everything to be so dark.

His footfalls were heavy as he crossed over to her, he had already put his shoes back on. He hovered a moment before sitting at her side.

"You could come with me."

She squinted in the dark, trying to see his face more clearly. "To your tent?"

He chuckled. "You're right, silly question."

Hadn't he just been getting ready to leave without another word? Did he think she would be offended if she woke up and he was gone?

"I-" She wasn't really sure what she was going to say, but it ended up not mattering.

He kissed her. He kissed her with the fevered passion of a dying man, one hand holding the side of her face. When he pulled away she kept her eyes closed, and only heard the sharp intake of her own breath.

"I'll remember you." It sounded like so much more than a promise.

When Laura opened her eyes he was gone, and the ties holding her tent closed were undisturbed.


End file.
